Whether you’ve been a contractor for a while, or you’re just now entering the market in California, understanding you need a license is a must. The California Contractors State License Board (CSLB), further defined here, is doing its best to protect customers against unlicensed work, which is why it imposes strict rules and regulations to follow in order to obtain the license. Going through a set of significant steps and doing everything right will get you there, but before we begin talking about those, you’ll want to have another topic covered.
In short, you’ll want to understand why you actually need a contractor license. Not being familiar with those reasons could get you to think that you can operate without it on the California market, which could further lead to issues with the law. Apart from needing to do this so as to obey the law, you’ll also quite benefit from it in different regards. Knowing why doing this is good for you is important, that’s why we’ll cover that before explaining how you can get the license.
Why You Need A Contractor License
Professional credibility is crucial in every single business, and if your customers can’t trust you, then you’re highly unlikely to get and keep a lot of them. Trusting unlicensed contractors is not exactly a common practice among people, and most of your potential clients will turn to a company that has met the CSLB requirements already and that has been approved for work by the Boards, instead of working with those contractors who haven’t gone through the licensing process yet. Thus, building professional credibility and consequently getting more customers is your reason number one to do this.
Furthermore, having a contractor license will open up the doors towards larger projects, residential, commercial and government ones, giving you much more freedom when deciding on what to work on and providing you with more opportunities for earning a great profit. Bidding on the jobs you want without worrying whether you’ll be caught not having a license is definitely a huge plus, and it makes your job more secure. It will make you more competitive and allow you to grow your business.
Tax incentives are also to be considered when deciding if you want to become a licensed contractor. Writing off certain expenses, such as tools, gas, home offices, trucks and similar come tax season is certainly a great option that’s bound to motivate you to go through the licensing process. Additionally, getting discounts on materials and supplies is another great plus, and so is the possibility of getting business loans should you wind up needing a cash boost aimed at growing your business.
How To Get It
Checking the actual requirements set by the CSLB is the first step in obtaining your contractor license, as well as checking for situations that are classified as exemptions from licensing. Before applying for an examination, you have to be aware of the requirements and the exemption, so as to know where you stand, to understand your precise situation and to figure out what to do next. Meeting the requirements shouldn’t be difficult, but applying without first getting familiar with those could get you rejected.
Upon checking all the requirements and understanding precisely which type of a license you need, you’ll have to work on meeting those mentioned requirements and making any changes that could be necessary in the way you do business. Getting a contractor’s bond and liability insurance is the next step after being sure you meet all the requirements, and the value of the bond must be at least $25,000. Getting the bond is actually the final step, as it guarantees you’ll abide by all the local and government rules when providing services to your customers, while also serving as extra protection for your customers in case of disputes.
Obtaining this license, as you can see, is not difficult, but you are required to do thorough research on the criteria you have to meet and to, then, make any adjustments necessary for meeting them. Going through this process, even though it could be time-consuming, will be worth it, because you’ll get more job opportunities and more clients. Gaining the freedom to work on any project you want is the most crucial benefit of doing this, so I’d advise you to start the process right away.
